Renewed vigor

So another week has passed without me coming over. My blog is perhaps starting to feel the same way that my mother does.
Anyway - done now - got to make the best of it.
As I have mentioned ad infinitum I started a new job in March which took/takes up a lot of my energy and time. But it is essentially the same job that took/takes up so much time as I did before but in a different and (has to be said) better environment so I should be used to it. However I did go from one to the other without a break - not even a day - and I think that took its toll because I was kn... very tired. But I had last week off work and I feel a zillion times better.
I had a lovely week of finally doing some chores that I've been putting off for ages (a fact that gets me down by itself) baking, cooking, taking the dog to the beach and visiting sleepy market towns for shopping and pub lunches. And, while that was all good, the best bit was that there was no alarm and I slept until I woke up which was such a treat and absolutley fantastic.
Back to reality tomorrow though but at least I can face it with renewed vigor which is something that I hope to apply to me writing too. It has sufferred, I have put it off but the fact fact that I haven't even looked at a piece of writing for a week means that I want to now. Having just said that though, does that mean that I'm not really writer material because I have often read that writers "have" to write and frankly I didn't last week.
Here we go.

WHAT!!!!

How can it be nearly a month since I was here? That's ridiculous - where is the time going?
Well as you can see I am still alive and kicking. I have spent the last month writing non fiction as the short fiction bug has still not returned and tinkering about with BTL. Which brings me to the reason I am here.
An update.
To be honest I haven't done much on BTL in the last month either. Seems that making a living is getting in the way - again. However I did delve into it a few minutes ago and realised that my MC wasn't speaking in her voice. Remember how I said after chapter 1 that she had finall found her voice and I like it. Well I have had to admit to myself that in my haste to get through it (remember I did set myself a deadline) I wasn't being thorough enough at pruning. I think the first chapter is fab possibly the second too but the following three have probably been rushed and I think that I will have to go back and have another look at them and make sure that MC is still speaking with that voice.
So that's the plan anyway.
Right so I'm off to see what the rest of you have been up to in the last month.

The wanderer returns

Just a quick note to say that G has finally returned to BTL. He hasn't had a speaking part yet but as the enigmatic stanger with the retro clothes watching the policeman walk away from the scene of an accident. I don't think he's going to be quite so cocky this time round but who knows because like I said he hasn't opened his mouth yet.
Have had such a productive morning. I worked on some articles as well as BTL, I baked some cakes, made a pie and even got to the bottom of the ironing pile. Not quite sure what has come over me but I wish every day could be so productive.

Starting Officially

So it is "officially" April which means that the rejig of BTL has "officially" started. When I gave myself a six month deadline it seemed such a long time but I know from bitter experience that it is not anywhere near as long as you think it is. So, I'd best get on with it and not bleat on about it. I have a couple of things that I am committed to writing this morning so I will get on with chapter 2 at some point this afters. Or at least that is the plan unless number 1 Son should turn up showering me with Mother's Day gifts. I'm willing to wager that I'll be rejigging this afternoon.

Still no sign

I managed to do both things. I caught up on a bit of sleep and I also did some rijigging. I have now completed chapter 1 (round of applause) and guess what? There's still no sign of G. I have however decided on the perfect place for us to get our first glimpse of him and I believe it will towards the end of chapter 2. I'm thinking that his introduction will be brief and fleeting which of course both mean the same thing but I'm sure you catch my drift as it were. We and MC will see him briefly and maybe at this stage not pay hime too much attention, only later will his importance become apparant. This idea only dawned on me about five minutes ago and I am very excited about it.

Best laid plans

Thanks to the workings of my internal clock which somehow managed to take the loss of an hour into consideration I still woke up at the normal time. So instead of the usual 6 hours sleep I managed to get 5. Yay!!!! However I was awake and bright eyed so I've got on with the day and will hopefully catch up with the sleep later. That means that I did a couple of hours writing which is as we speak winging its way towards Editorland (wherever that is) and this afternoon I'm planning another hour on BTL. That is not written stone however as I may well be snoozing on the sofa this aternoon.

Weird week

It has been such a weird week.
I started it as the employee of one charity and ended it as the employee of another and have worked everyday inbetween. In a way its a good thing that I didn't have a break because it didn't give me time to dwell on what was happening but boy am I tired. The three day induction that I have had with my new employers has involved a 40 minute drive morning and night which is way more than I am used to. Luckily for me, from Monday its a 10 minute drive well 15 probably to my new place. So while I would normally have fitted writing into the few hours that I'll have spare in the morning something tells me that I will probably be asleep.

1st report

Okay so I spent almost an hour tweaking BTL and I thought I would report on progress. Well, considering I haven't touched any fiction writing since the October it went alright. It felt fine.
There are now 66 more words than there were before and none of them refer to G - he hasn't reappeared yet. However my MC has finally found her voice. The interested agent from last year said that she liked the voice of the MC but now it is perfect - just right for her - and me.
I have to say that there have been times in the last few months when I wondered if I would ever touch fiction again because the non fiction is ticking along nicely but after making the committment in Blogland to do it and actually making the effort to find the time, I really enjoyed it.

Rejig starts today

Remember that rejig of BTL that I said I would start in April and give yself 6 months to do? Well, alright, I know its not April but I'm starting it today and I am giving myself until the end of October to complete it. I don't anticipate getting much done before April though mainly due to a bungle on my part which means that I'll be working at my current job (apart from today and Sunday) until next Wednesday and starting my new job on Thursday. Also an appointment this afternoon means that I won't get more than an hour to look at it today. I just wanted to make the public commitment to doing it (hence the post) because I'll be more inclined to do it then. I still don't know where I'm going to find the time to do it but I will - from somewhere. I hear that sleep is very over-rated.

Stuff

My head has been all over the place since January. Although I never said the word, I know that most of you probably realised that I was losing a job that I loved and being made redundant. I've been there a long time (9 years) and its a job that I've enjoyed. During February there was a chance that I could stay with the organisation but it would involve an hours commute in the morning and another one at night. I considered that for a while though I wasn't looking forward to the drive. Then I was offerred the chance to do the same job for a different organisation only 7 1/2 miles away from where I live so I snatched their hands off.
Needless to say, writing has not been a priority for me in the last three months.
So here's the situation at the moment. I have one more week of actual "work" which won't be easy because to see a place dieing on its feet is not nice and I work with volunteers who are going to find the process particularly hard so I'm going to be doing a lot of "picking up" this week. Then after that there are 3 days of actual closure. Then , and I know this was bad planning on my part, I start my new job the next day.
Hopefully when that process is out of the way I can start getting back to normal.
Also as some of you know, I used to write fiction with varying amounts of success but after a particularly unsuccessful early 2010 decided to concentrate on non fiction which I have been doing since October. That is going okay and I will still continue with that but from April I want to work on fiction again - or at least some of it.
My novel BTL had some interest from an agent last year but there were some twaeks that they wanted, Sadly after the tweaks they still didn't "love" (their words) enough to take it on. Personally I think that the tweaks requested were too harsh but they did make for better writing. So, from April I am going to give myself 6 months to tweak BTL again - not going as far as the agent wanted (they made me get rid of G and as those of you that have lived through this with me know - I love G, nay maybe even a little in love with him) but making the writing more of the style that the agents tweaks created, Sorry if that last sentence makes no sense but on here I write as I think and once its said, its said, just like in a proper conversation between friends.
That's the plan anyway.

Changes

I start a new job in at the end of the month (Yay!!!!) but it means that I've moved here to Frugal City. I'm sure that it will be a lovely place to live but I'm on my own over there so if anyone fancies popping over with their own words of wisdom now and again that would be great. If anyone would like to come and live in Frugal City I'm sure that there are places to stay at a reasonable price.
On a serious note I'm really looking forward to the challenge of the new job but the initial rewards will not be financial - hence the move to Frugal City. Actually its a place that I've tried to visit from time to time in the past but somehow stark economics have a way of focusing the mind.
Anyway now that the day job has been sorted maybe I can settle down to writing again.

A mixed bag

Writing went well earlier today and I achieved what I wanted to do. The Editors (I think of them as a life form like The Klingons) weren't so happy with something that I did the other day but thats a rewrite not an outright rejection so that was alright too.
Tonight though the article I wanted to research has fallen flat and I have achieved nothing but that could well be down to one of two things:
1. The fact that I spent an hour crying for no reason - must be my age
or
2. When I decided that A glass of Port would cheer me up, I drank too much of it and now all I want to do is go to sleep.
Oh, and if that wasn't bad enough, I've lost a follower. Hope they're not under the ironing pile because if they are they are lost forever.

Apologies

... for being such a bad and infrequent blogger. Goodness knows what my new followers must think. I used to have things to say once upon a time - and now and again some of them were interesting.
My only excuse is that things are still up in the air regarding the day job and as I'm sure at least some of you will know that occupies pretty much every waking hour of the day. Well that's not my only excuse actually, the other one is that I haven't really done anything that's worth mentioning. Maybe that is connected to my first excuse though.
Since I stopped writing fiction I'm not struggling with word counts or rejigging plots and I just seem to get on with it. I'm still not as prolific as I was before Christmas but that may also be connected to the first excuse. if only I didn't need a day job life would be so much easier. Some of you may remember though from the full time writing experiment earlier in the year I cannot support myself through writing and I do need a day job. Plus, for me personally (and this could prove a problem if I do get my fiction mojo back and get a book deal which means I have to write full time) freelancing is a bit too unstable for me. I like to know that there is going to be monet going into the bank once a month and that it will be enough to just about cover the bills. I know its not very adventurous but I'm not prepared to see my family go under so that I can follow a dream.
Talking of fiction mojo - I haven't got it back yet but I am building up to revisiting a project in a months time or so. I am going to knuckle down to it and see what happens. Its not coming back on its own so maybe I have to force the issue.
I'll try not to be away so long next time.

Not such a good start...

..to the new year writing wise but not so bad either so what am I moaning about? It has been "okay." January wasn't as prolific as December but it had a few successful days. February has got off to a slow start but then it is only the 3rd so there's time to improve.
I was on a roll before Christmas but then I sort of lost the momentum and never picked it up again. Well I guess I have had a lot on my mind - and yes its still whizzing round the space between my ears.
And a quick note about the "full time writer" experiment. It was relatively successful but it taught me that I'm not really at the stage in my writing where I can afford to give up the day job and rely on what I can earn from writing.
Heres to the rest of 2011.
BTW Its dear old Ma and Pa's 60th (yes I said 60th) wedding anniversary today. Go them!!!

Update

Just thought I would pop over and give you a quick update on this week's project. So far I am 2 days into the 3 day project of writing "full time" and I have to tell you that I found/am finding it quite difficult. Not the writing part which is fine but the discipline. Actually sitting at a key board for hours on end researching and writing meaningful stuff may sound idyllic but it is so tempting to make another cup of tea or eat another bit of cake.
I was delayed on the first day by a computer problem when I thought that I might have a virus and so had to run some anti-virus software. That stopped me doing what I wanted to at that time but it did allow for reading a bit of BTL and deciding what I was going to do there. So technically I suppose it wasn't wasted time but it just stopped me from getting all the writing that I wanted to do done. Then before you know it, it was 2pm which was my designated stop time (I did start just after 7) so I didn't get the prep done for the second day. Yesterday I didn't get everything done that I wanted to either mainly due to the fact that I spent a while on the phone to a lovely bloke at Dell because I had lost my wireless Internet connection and as everything that I am submitting this week is via email, a connection is sort of vital. Turns out I'd caught a button so it was easily remedied but I did feel a twit. Also the fact that the prep wasn't done the day before held me up. Nil desperandum I thought I can catch up on Friday (3rd day) which I might except that I'm going to knock off early today because Himself has bought tickets for "The King's Speech" (lovely man, can't wait.)
So if anything these few days has taught me that if I were to do this on a regular basis I would have to be more disciplined but I think that I knew that already. I have to say though that I have been so impressed with myself for not surfing the net and actually getting on with the job in hand.
I guess the success of this experiment will be in how much of the stuff that I have written is picked up by editors because as someone who is not independently wealthy and does actually need to make a living unless someone buys the stuff that I write when I do it as a "job" then we're not going to eat much.

Plan for tomorrow

The plan for tomorrow is to put a full shift in writing - that is at least 6 hours. I'll let you know a) if I manage it and b) if I achieve what I want to.
Night all.

Time for a change

I wasn;t going to blog about this but I was sitting here lap top on knee, dog's head on feet writing an article and I thought what the hec, things are always better when you talk about them. So here goes.
The result of the meeting I had last week (remember I asked for good vibes) was that the job that I currently do is coming to an end in March so it's going to be a time of change for me. The job is gone at least in its current location and probably all together but there are still some negotiations to be entered into (so I believe - daresay I'll be the last to know.) Anyway, nil desperandum and all that because I believe that it will be okay in the end and that I am being moved into another phase of my life. I've faced worse and come through it and with God and good friends on my side I will do again.
So let me get to the point of the post. It is a time of change and for change and as luck would have it I'd booked this week as a holiday from work so I'll have lots of time to think about it. I think that I have a drastic idea for BTL but I'm going to give it some thought before I commit myself to anything.
Anyway must go I've got an article that needs to be submitted by noon and its currently 10.15am with barely a word on the page. Wonder if I've got time to make a cuppa? What am I saying - there's always time for a cuppa.

Hi

I see that I have some new followers so I just wanted to say hello to you, thank you for choosing to follow my antics and welcome to the merry band. Blogging has been a little lax in the last month or so and depending on how today's meeting goes I can't promise what it'll be like in the weeks to come but I will try to keep you updated with what is going on in the Land of the Pink Pen.

Good vibes please

Its getting on for midnight and I know that I should go to bed because I'm tired but I'm a bit scared that I won't be able to sleep when I get there. You see, I have a meeting at work tomorrow that I'm really not looking forward to and I don't want to spend all night thinking about it. Sorry I haven't blogged this week but my mind has been elswhere - sadly.
If you're not doing anything tomorrow around 11am (GMT) please send me good vibes.

Time warp

According to my phone it is 23.59 in the year of Our Lord 2100 which freaked me out a bit when I saw it at half six this morning. It still says that by the way. So I'm not stuck in the past but 90 years in the future which. Well let me tell you it looks pretty much the same as 2010 did when I was there yesterday except we must have developed some sort of super flash anti aging device because I've just seen Dave and Nick on the news and they haven't aged a day since I last saw them. Maybe it wanlt the news - maybe it was the History Channel.
Happy New Year to you all - whatever year it is.